


Drown in Your Thoughts

by Anonymous_Cupcake



Category: New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Alternate Universe - Non-Despair (Dangan Ronpa), Bullying, Character Death, Drowning, Gen, Ghosts, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Past Character Death, Rumors
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-23
Updated: 2019-01-23
Packaged: 2019-10-14 21:32:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17516237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anonymous_Cupcake/pseuds/Anonymous_Cupcake
Summary: “Before you go, there's something I wanted to ask you about.” he said. “I'm not sure if you're aware of it but if you think you know anything it'd be a big help.” The boy fished around his bag and pulled out his phone. He opened the club's forum and showed it to Rantaro.From: AnonymousA friend told me something that's been on my mind a lot, so if it's not too much trouble I was hoping you guys might be able help. Her rumor went like this:“You know how the school is surrounded by a forest? Well, if you go deep enough then you'll find a lake. They say that a kid who went here years ago had suicidal thoughts and jumped into the lake and drowned. Apparently you can throw a rock in there and it never hits the bottom!People have been saying that if you jump into it and think suicidal thoughts he'll appear and either pull you out or drag you in.”





	Drown in Your Thoughts

**Author's Note:**

> Got the idea from a game I found on Google Play Store

“Amami, wait!”

 

The adventurer turned around to see Saihara run up to him. “You uh, you forgot your book! I didn't look at it because it looks personal but here!”

 

Saihara handed him a green spiral notebook and adjusted his hat. Rantaro took the notebook and thanked Saihara. He was so lost in thought he would've left the club room without noticing it.

 

“Uh, by the way,” Saihara said, looking down in embarrassment. “Do you ever think you'll join? Don't feel pressured or anything!”

 

Saihara was part of the Newspaper Club, better known as the Info Club to other students. While they acted like a normal group and helped out with the school's newspaper, a small part of the club solves mysteries and figure out rumors, supernatural or not. It was one of the reasons Saihara had joined, his skills as a detective (or really, an about to be detective) helped the club a lot.

 

“I don't think solving mysteries is really my thing, but you should keep asking around. I'm sure there's someone who'd be interested.” Rantaro replied.

 

Saihara nodded and smiled. “Well, thank you for coming to see us. It means a lot whenever someone comes by.”

 

The two said their goodbyes and were about to part ways when Saihara realized something. 

 

“Before you go, there's something I wanted to ask you about.” he said. “I'm not sure if you're aware of it but if you think you know anything it'd be a big help.” The boy fished around his bag and pulled out his phone. He opened the club's forum and showed it to Rantaro.

 

_ From: Anonymous _

_ A friend told me something that's been on my mind a lot, so if it's not too much trouble I was hoping you guys might be able help. Her rumor went like this: _

 

_ “You know how the school is surrounded by a forest? Well, if you go deep enough then you'll find a lake. They say that a kid who went here years ago had suicidal thoughts and jumped into the lake and drowned. Apparently you can throw a rock in there and it never hits the bottom! _

 

_ People have been saying that if you jump into it and think suicidal thoughts he'll appear and either pull you out or drag you in.” _

 

_ It's fine if you can't figure it out, I know some people might not be comfortable with this sort of thing. _

 

“Well, at least they were understanding.” Rantaro said, looking over the post. “I've actually never hear about this one, so I don't really know anything that could be useful.” He gave Saihara his phone back.

 

“Well, thank you anyway. I was actually hoping you could find the lake for us, if you don't mind! You've always had a habit for finding places.” Saihara said.

 

Despite the two not being friends for long, Rantaro knew Saihara has seen his love for exploring. He had already explored a small section of the forest so it shouldn't be too hard to find it.

 

“I'll try my best.” Rantaro said. “But… Saihara…”

 

The adventurer took a deep breath. It was a touchy subject, but he felt like he needed it to be said. “When I find the lake, you're not going to jump in, right?”

 

It was a good thing school was over, because the two stood in silence for a bit. Finally, Saihara spoke up. “No, I'm wouldn't do that. Kaito would never forgive me if I did. This isn't because of-”

 

“Yes, it's about her.” Rantaro said. He wanted to get it over with before Saihara had another breakdown. It's been a month since one of the students, Kaede Akamatsu, killed herself. Apparently she was getting bullied, and it got so bad that she couldn't handle it. The bullies were dealt with, but she was Saihara's best friend. Because of that, Saihara felt guilty and believed that it was his fault she died. 

 

“I'm doing better now, and I know the last thing Kaede would want is for me to join her. If you do find the lake, Kirigiri told me she would go.” the detective said. The hat he wore hid his eyes, but Rantaro could tell he was telling the truth.

 

He put his hand on Saihara's shoulders. “Give me until next week. I'll find the lake.” The quick change in topic was enough for Saihara to forget what they were just talking about and give a quick goodbye, leaving Rantaro alone in the hallway.

 

Rantaro spent all his free time looking for the lake after that. Occasionally, Korekiyo would come with him. On Thursday, he had finally found a clearing, and was met with a beautiful sight. The lake was in the center, with flowers growing around the edges. Amazed, Rantaro took a quick picture and sent it to Saihara. Seeing that he still had some time before he needed to go home, he decided to stay.

 

He sat on the ground and took out his green notebook. One of his younger sisters gave it to him as a gift, and he cherished it knowing she had bought it thinking of him. He mainly used it to write down his thoughts, plus a couple of doodles that Yonaga drew.

 

After spending a couple of minutes writing, he looked up to see a boy his age standing next to the lake. Rantaro didn't hear anyone walk past him, so out of curiosity, he walked towards him. He noted the boy's blackish purple hair, and how his clothes looked like they were falling apart at the seams, the major parts being held together by metal clips.

 

“You come here often?” he asked. The boy flinched when he heard Rantaro, but seemed to calm down when he saw him. “Oh, uh, hi.” he said. “I've been coming here for a while. It's just so beautiful here.”

 

Rantaro nodded. “I'm Rantaro Amami. You?”

 

“Kokichi Ouma.”

 

The boy, Ouma, kept staring down at the lake. “Have you heard of the rumor?” Rantaro asked.

 

Ouma snickered. “Rumor? Didn't think this tiny body of water had anything special about it.” His tone and demeanor changed quickly, but felt natural somehow. Not thinking too much of it, Rantaro told him what he read on the forum.

 

“The ghost of a suicidal kid, huh? They give him a name yet?” Ouma asked. Rantaro shook his head.

 

“Probably for the best, anyways.” Ouma bent down and put his hand in the water. Rantaro bent down beside him, looking at his reflection. “Have you ever had shitty friends?”

 

Rantaro looked over at Ouma. The boy was looking at the lake solemnly, like this was the last place he wanted to be.

 

“I don't think any of my friends are shitty.” Rantaro answered. “In fact, I actually think  _ I'm _ the shitty one.”

 

He didn't expect the slap, but Ouma gave him a quick one. “Ow.”

 

“You don't sound shitty, look shitty, or act shitty. So don't beat yourself up. I used to do that too.” The boy said.

 

Rantaro nodded and took out his phone, which was vibrating at an alarming pace. As he did this, Ouma kept talking.

 

_ From Saihara _

 

_ Amami! _

_ If you're still at the lake, leave now! _

_ I did more research and _

_ We weren't given the right rumor. _

_ If you find the ghost you'll be killed _

_ He'll drown you himself if he learns that you had better friends _

_ Please be careful! _

 

Looking down at his phone, Rantaro realized that Ouma's reflection was gone.

 

“My friends didn't care about me.”

 

Rantaro wanted to run, but he couldn't move his body. Was he about to die?

 

“I was hurting, but they didn't care. They would just pretend that I was ok when it so clear I wasn't!”

 

Ouma grabbed Rantaro by his shirt collar and lifted him up. Being a ghost must have given him a lot of strength, he looked like a twig.

 

“But you… you have it all. Your friends care about you, you're popular. Hell, you already have someone who's in love with you!”

 

“I just wanted to be loved…” Ouma said, tears falling down. “And you know what? You don't deserve to be loved either!”

 

In one swift motion, Ouma pushed Rantaro into the water. Instead of meeting ground, Rantaro realized the lake was infinite.

 

The adventurer tried to swim back to the surface, but felt something grab his legs. Invisible hands were pulling him down, his struggles became futile.

 

“This is how I die.” he thought. He was going to die, feeling cold, knowing that Saihara was about to lose another friend.

 

He was running out of breath.

 

He tried to keep his last thoughts happy, but all he could think about was how he failed his sisters.


End file.
